Door-to-door sales come with a hitch

Monday

Aug 20, 2012 at 6:00 AM

Mitch Lipka Consumer Alert

Once upon another generation, a visit from a door-to-door salesman held out the possibility of being exposed to a product you otherwise might not have seen. Consumers were less mobile. There was no Internet. Not even infomercials.

It stood to reason that door-to-door sales would become less of a thought for consumers today as the ability to buy has multiplied. But based on complaints, questions and observations of late, this old way of doing business appears to have made something of a comeback — and not in a good way.

Not that every person who comes to your door to sell has bad intentions, but this method of sales — whether for vacuum cleaners, alternative energy, home repairs, or even magazines — is a losing proposition for consumers. Simply put, anytime a consumer is backed into a corner and has to make a decision on the spur of the moment, the equation has changed and power has been ceded.

What’s worse is many of these door-to-door visitors are quite persuasive. Whether legitimate salespeople or otherwise, they make their money by persuading people to believe their pitch. That could be that they’re selling the best vacuum ever invented or that they’re poor teens down on their luck and are selling magazine subscriptions to support some organization or their own college dreams.

Any legitimate salesperson will be willing to leave you information to ponder and provide you a way to contact them, should you decide their service or product merits your interest. Any who demand an immediate answer should be met with “No, thanks.”

Both state and federal law give consumers an out if you’ve bought something at home that costs more than $25. By midnight on the third business day after signing a contract (with certain exceptions), you can cancel in writing. It’s better, of course, not to reach that point.

Apply the same strategy as you should when you get a telephone solicitation: Never respond “yes” and then provide payment information or sign a financial obligation. If you’re interested, ask for a phone number to call. Have them send you more information. Then do some research and make a reasoned, informed decision.

Or, to be even safer: Don’t answer the door to someone you don’t know.

Mitch Lipka is a nationally known consumer columnist and runs TheConsumerChronicle.com. He lives in Worcester. You can find him on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/MitchLipka. If you’re having a run-in with a business, think you’re being mistreated as a consumer or have seen something that you think your fellow consumers ought to know about, let him know. You can email Mitch at ConsumerNews@Aol.com.